COOPERATION 821There is a psychological as well as an economic reason why you
should form the habit of intensive action. Your body is made up of
billions of tiny cells that are highly sensitive and amenable to the
influence of your mind. If your mind is lethargic and inactive, the
cells of your body become lazy and inactive also. If you doubt this,
the next time you feel lazy think about an activity of which you are
fond and notice how quickly the cells of your body will respond to
your Enthusiasm and your lazy feeling will disappear.
The cells of the human body respond to a person's state of mind
in exactly the same manner that the people of a city respond to
the mass psychology that dominates the city. If a group of leaders
engages in sufficient action to give a city the reputation of being an
"alive" city, this action influences all who live there. The same prin-
ciple applies to the relationship between the mind and the body. An
active, dynamic mind keeps the cells of the body in a constant state
of activity.
The amount of work that I perform every day and still keep in
good physical condition is a source of wonderment and mystery to
those who know me well, yet there is no mystery to it, and the system
I follow does not cost anything.
First, I drink a cup of hot water when I get up in the morning,
before I have breakfast. My breakfast consists of rolls made of whole
wheat and bran, breakfast cereal, fruit, soft-boiled eggs once in a
while, and a cup of coffee. For lunch I eat vegetables (most any kind),
whole-wheat bread, and drink a glass of buttermilk. And for supper, a
well-cooked steak once or twice a week, vegetables (especially lettuce),
and coffee.
I walk an average of ten miles a day, five miles into the country
and five miles back, using this period for meditation and thought.
Perhaps the thinking is as valuable to my health as the walk.
You cannot be a person of action if you overeat and underexer-
cise. Neither can you be a person of action if you run to the pill bottle